Episode 33 – Spinoza pt. 1 – From Baruch to Benedicto!

On this episode of the podcast, we learn about Baruch De Spinoza. We find out why it was not only life-threatening to have an unpopular opinion during the time Spinoza lived, but also potentially very profitable. We also question whether religion is really to blame for the violent acts that are committed on its behalf, and find out why Spinoza was exiled from his community and forced to live a life of solitude. Finally, we read excerpts from Spinoza’s correspondence with his ex-friend Albert Burgh regarding Christianity and find out whose arguments hold the most water (spoiler alert: Spinoza wins). All this and more on the latest episode of Philosophize This!

If you were interested in Spinoza and his forced intellectual life of solitude, consider checking out one of my favorite books that talks about how to use visualization and habits of thought to apply these concepts from philosophy in your daily life. It is called Psycho Cybernetics, and if you are interested I wrote a review.

It’s a great book you can get for free by signing up for Audible through our link. Best of all, you help keep the show alive! 🙂

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Additional Stuff For Anyone Interested:

Here are the letters between Spinoza and Albert Burgh: http://www.sacred-texts.com/phi/spinoza/corr/corr73.htm

Great piece by the guardian on how to apply Spinoza to your life: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2011/feb/07/spinoza-philosophy-god-world

Great article that gives an alternative view: https://newhumanist.org.uk/articles/964/spinoza-the-atheist